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Welcome to the Click & Pledge Fundraising Command Center Podcast!
Welcome to the Click & Pledge Fundraising Command Center Podcast – your mission control for mastering modern philanthropy. Every month, we equip you with the insights, tools, and strategies you need to elevate your impact. We believe in understanding the why, mastering the what, and showcasing the how of successful fundraising. Tune in every Monday for a new perspective:
The Why
Start your month with the big picture. "The Why" is our thought-leadership series that dives into the deep, foundational concepts behind our work. Every first Monday, we explore the science, philosophy, and psychology of fundraising, technology, and giving. This show isn't just about what you do; it's about providing a framework for why you do it. Join us as we connect big ideas from neuroscience, behavioral economics, and cognitive science to the future of philanthropy.
The What
Get to know your toolkit. "The What" is our product-focused series where we go "under the hood" of the Click & Pledge platform. Every second Monday, we deconstruct our features, reveal the "story behind the product," and explain what our technology is designed to do. If you want to understand the architecture, the design, and the specific problems our tools solve, this is your guide to the blueprint.
The How
Learn from the leaders. "The How" is our community showcase, where we pass the microphone to the experts: your peers. Every third Monday, we invite nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and innovators to share how they are using our platform to run successful campaigns, engage donors, and grow their impact. These are their stories, their strategies, and your real-world templates for success.
Welcome to this edition of the Click and Pledge's Fundraising Command Center Podcast, where we talk the why, the what, and the how in the Click and Pledge's ecosystem. Today, we're undertaking a deep dive into one of the foundational and, frankly one of the most powerful components of our commerce suite.
Speaker 2:It's a big one.
Speaker 1:It is a huge one. We're talking about the store and events solution.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Our mission really is to walk you through exactly how this tool helps mission driven organizations, you know, get past all those manual processes. Mhmm. And handle all their online commerce and event registrations with, well, with some real strategic precision.
Speaker 2:And that precision is really what we wanna zero in on today. We get asked a lot about how we integrate so many functions, so I think it's important to state right up front. Yeah. The entire click and pay suite is a massive platform. I mean, it's designed to manage pretty much every nonprofit transaction type you can imagine.
Speaker 1:Right. So we can't possibly cover it all in one go.
Speaker 2:No. Absolutely not. We simply can't. This deep dive is really just the starting point. We're focusing on how we solve that that huge organizational headache of commerce and registration.
Speaker 1:All in one place.
Speaker 2:Exactly. So we definitely encourage you, our listener, to stay tuned for future deep dives because we will absolutely keep exploring other parts of this application.
Speaker 1:I think that's crucial context. We're just looking at one massive slice of the pie today. So let's start at the most fundamental level.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:When we're talking to an organization that's trying to streamline things, what is the core strategic definition of this specific tool? Like what problem does click and pay store and event actually solve?
Speaker 2:It solves what I like to call the Frankenstein problem.
Speaker 1:Okay. I'm intrigued.
Speaker 2:Well, you know how it is. An organization decides to sell some merch, run a five ks and then host a gala.
Speaker 1:Right. Three different goals.
Speaker 2:And they end up patching together an ecommerce platform for the merch, some third party ticketing tool for the run, and maybe they're just tracking gala RSVPs in an Excel sheet.
Speaker 1:Oh, the dreaded spreadsheet. I know it well.
Speaker 2:Click and Pay. Store in Event just eliminates all of that. It is our comprehensive, single source online commerce and event management solution and it's built specifically for the nonprofit workflow.
Speaker 1:So it's your digital marketplace and your registration hub all rolled into one.
Speaker 2:And completely integrated.
Speaker 1:So that consolidation hook is what stops organizations from, say, paying three separate subscription fees.
Speaker 2:That's part of it, for sure.
Speaker 1:But more importantly, it stops that administrative nightmare of trying to merge three different sets of data later on.
Speaker 2:Exactly.
Speaker 1:So we're talking about building full online storefronts, handling complex event registrations, managing ticketing, adding options.
Speaker 2:All inside one unified platform.
Speaker 1:That kind of centralization has a huge impact on just day to day efficiency.
Speaker 2:It does. I mean, we designed it for that seamless dual functionality. So whether you're selling 50 different products or you're processing thousands of early bird tickets for a conference.
Speaker 1:Or just a free webinar.
Speaker 2:Or even just a free webinar. Yeah. The system delivers a professional branded experience. And the immediate benefit is the data. Right.
Speaker 2:Because everything happens in the same place. The tracking for every attendee, every sponsor, every buyer is accurate, and it's real time just flows where it needs to go.
Speaker 1:Okay. Let's move into the what you can do side of things, which, seems to fall into those two main pillars. Mhmm. First up, the online stores. We know organizations can sell t shirts, you know, the usual swag, but what are some of the higher impact things they can manage and sell here?
Speaker 2:Well, beyond the standard merchandise, we really recommend organizations use the system for their high value transactions.
Speaker 1:Like what?
Speaker 2:Things like handling crucial membership purchases. You can even automate the renewals if you need to. Selling customized sponsorship packages at different tiers is a big one.
Speaker 1:Okay. So not just a generic sponsor.
Speaker 2:No. No. Very specific. Gold, silver, bronze with different benefits. You can also manage digital downloads like ebooks or research papers and really any custom offering that's specific to their mission.
Speaker 1:The variety sounds pretty extensive.
Speaker 2:It is. It lets organizations professionalize their revenue streams way beyond just simple donations.
Speaker 1:And when you say professional commerce, that has to mean having, like, granular control over everything. It's not just listing a price and a picture.
Speaker 2:Exactly right. We suggest focusing really heavily on those control points to give a real retail grade experience.
Speaker 1:So what does that control look like?
Speaker 2:Well, you manage everything.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:From the product descriptions and high res images down to really complex product variants.
Speaker 1:Variants like sizes and colors.
Speaker 2:Sizes, colors, personalized engravings, you name it. Plus inventory tracking, setting specific availability windows, tiered pricing.
Speaker 1:And you could even add a little donation ask in the cart. Right?
Speaker 2:You can. Yeah. The ability to include an add on donation or an upsell right in the shopping cart flow is key. That depth ensures your store operates with the efficiency people expect now.
Speaker 1:Okay. So let's pivot to that second pillar, event registration pages. I mean, nonprofit events can range from super simple to incredibly complex.
Speaker 2:They really can.
Speaker 1:Where does this tool really shine?
Speaker 2:It shines where complexity meets high volume. So think about those high profile galas with specific seating charts.
Speaker 1:Right. Table 10, seat four.
Speaker 2:Precisely. Or large scale athletic events like a five k or a walk run where you need to collect waivers and have different registration segments.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:Multi day conferences are another perfect example. You might need different registration paths for regular attendees versus speakers or sponsors.
Speaker 1:But it also works for just simple stuff too.
Speaker 2:Oh, absolutely. Even for streamlined access for simpler community gatherings. If the process involves someone securing a spot and you need to collect specific data about them, this is the environment to use.
Speaker 1:And on ticketing, nonprofits rarely have just one ticket type. Know, they'll have a board member rate, an early bird special, a student discount.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's a great point.
Speaker 1:How does the system manage that kind of flexibility?
Speaker 2:We suggest leveraging the features that allow for, well, an unlimited array of ticket types. You can define all those specific access levels you mentioned, VIP, early bird, general, student.
Speaker 1:And set a different price for each one.
Speaker 2:And manage all the corresponding price points all tied to the same event. And crucially, we allow for custom registration questions tailored to that specific ticket type.
Speaker 1:So you could ask for meal preferences for VIP ticket but not for a general admission one.
Speaker 2:Exactly that. Or t shirt sizing for the five k runners or which workshop someone wants to sign up for at a conference. You can also handle group registrations and it all ends with an automatic branded confirmation and receipt sent instantly.
Speaker 1:This is where we start to bridge the what to the strategic how. The little details that really elevate the experience. Let's talk about the supporter side of things. That modern shopping cart experience, what is it that ensures a high conversion rate?
Speaker 2:Trust and familiarity. It's that simple. Supporters need to feel like they are purchasing from an established, secure retailer.
Speaker 1:Not filling out some clunky, outdated form.
Speaker 2:Exactly. So we make sure they get that familiar e commerce flow. They can add multiple different items to their cart, say, a t shirt and two gala tickets, modify the quantities, apply a coupon code.
Speaker 1:Add that optional donation you mentioned.
Speaker 2:Right. With a single click. And importantly, they can use guest checkout.
Speaker 1:Which is huge. No one wants to create another password.
Speaker 2:No one. And since the whole system is mobile ready, encrypted, and secure, you just maximize the likelihood that a supporter completes the transaction instead of abandoning their cart.
Speaker 1:Okay. And you mentioned the catalog and product management has unlimited capacity. For a nonprofit, why is that so important? What advanced features really make a difference there?
Speaker 2:Unlimited capacity is all about growth. It's for, say, a national organization or a university with a lot of different departments. It just means you can create unlimited products, tickets, hessky variations, bundles.
Speaker 1:You could bundle like a hat and a shirt together for a discount.
Speaker 2:Yep. And you can create all the price tiers you need without ever worrying about hitting some kind of vendor limit. But the real strategic difference comes from the advanced controls.
Speaker 1:Such as?
Speaker 2:We recommend emphasizing the ability to set max or min quantities for an order, which is really useful for bulk purchasing. You can configure usage rules and the vital feature of managing availability windows.
Speaker 1:Ah, so you can set the early bird price to automatically end on a certain date.
Speaker 2:To the minute. You can set it to vanish and be replaced by the general admission price at 12.01AM on, say, August 1. That saves so much admin time, and it guarantees your price integrity.
Speaker 1:Let's hone in on a feature you brought up. Open price items.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:This feels like it really bridges that gap between commerce and straight up fundraising.
Speaker 2:It absolutely does. And this is critical for tax and reconciliation.
Speaker 1:How's it work?
Speaker 2:So open price items allow the supporter to choose the amount they want to pay for something. Strategically, this lets us define a floor price. Let's say the actual cost of a coffee mug is $10.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:We can configure the system to legally treat that $10 as a standard commerce transaction, but any amount paid over $10 is automatically receded and flagged as a tax deductible donation.
Speaker 1:Wow. So it does the math for you?
Speaker 2:It does the math automatically. This optimizes your tax receipting and your donor stewardship and it means your finance team isn't manually calculating the deductible portion of every single sale.
Speaker 1:That is a massive insight. Especially for organizations dealing with complex compliance.
Speaker 2:It's a lifesaver for them.
Speaker 1:Okay, let's talk about visual identity, branding and store configuration. The tool has to feel like it belongs to the organization, not some generic third party system.
Speaker 2:Absolutely, and organizations maintain full visual control. We suggest leveraging the ability to easily configure themes, control the storefront layout, and importantly, custom domain support.
Speaker 1:So if you're the, National Historical Society, your store can actually be stored. Nationalhistoricalsociety.org.
Speaker 2:Exactly. It just builds so much trust.
Speaker 1:And this brings us to what I think is maybe the most powerful feature for larger groups, the multi store capability. Explain how this helps a big federated organization avoid brand chaos.
Speaker 2:This is non negotiable for them. For any organization with multiple regional chapters or distinct programs or departments like a university.
Speaker 1:Right. A university could have a store for the alumni association, one for the arts department, one for athletics.
Speaker 2:Precisely. And you can build separate, unique, and fully independent stores all within the same click and pay framework.
Speaker 1:So each store gets its own branding.
Speaker 2:Its own branding, its own distinct product catalog, its own independent sales tracking and financial ledgering, and even its own custom domain.
Speaker 1:So if the Dallas chapter is running a five ks and the Houston chapter is running a gala, they have completely separate branding and financials.
Speaker 2:Yep.
Speaker 1:But the core technology and the data structure is all unified behind the scenes.
Speaker 2:That's it. It allows them to maintain their local identity and autonomy while we handle all the complexity of compliance and data aggregation centrally.
Speaker 1:Okay. Let's pivot hard to data because that's really the true test of a consolidated system.
Speaker 2:It's where the magic happens.
Speaker 1:You mentioned real time integration, especially with Salesforce.
Speaker 2:Mhmm.
Speaker 1:Strategically, why is a direct sync so much better than, say, using connectors or doing manual imports?
Speaker 2:The main strategic benefit is data cleanliness and velocity. Direct sync eliminates manual entry, and when you do that, you eliminate human error and you eliminate reconciliation delays.
Speaker 1:Sir, it's faster and more accurate.
Speaker 2:Much more. We recommend emphasizing that direct flow. Contacts, accounts, products, orders, opportunities, event registrations, attendee data, it all synchronizes with Salesforce automatically.
Speaker 1:Which means your development team isn't dealing with stale data or cleaning up mismatched records every Monday morning.
Speaker 2:Exactly. And the elimination of that cleanup workload, I mean, the sheer amount of time saved by not chasing down missing attendee details or correcting financial records, that's a massive value prop for admin team.
Speaker 1:It really is.
Speaker 2:And beyond just the CRM sync, we suggest leaning heavily on the built in reporting features. You get immediate actionable reports across all sorts of categories.
Speaker 1:Like what kind of reports?
Speaker 2:Things like product sales velocity, ticket sales trends over time, event attendance metrics, detailed donor demographics tied to what they actually purchase, and of course essential financial reconciliation data.
Speaker 1:So you're moving beyond just collecting data, you're actually enabling, true data backed decision making.
Speaker 2:That's the whole point.
Speaker 1:If you can analyze which sponsorship tier sells fastest or which t shirt drives the most engagement, you can better plan what you're going to offer next quarter.
Speaker 2:That is the core benefit. You leverage the information to plan better future events, you optimize your pricing, and you tailor your offerings to what your supporters are actually doing.
Speaker 1:So to sum it all up, who is this complete solution really for? Strategically speaking, what kinds of organizations gain the most by consolidating all their commerce and events with us?
Speaker 2:Well, while any non profit, school, university, association, or foundation can certainly use it, the solution is really designed for those who are managing complex, multi faceted revenue streams.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:The organizations that see the biggest leap in efficiency are those that commit to having their core transactions. We're talking payments, online stores, events, donations, and their CRM sync all managed under one reliable platform.
Speaker 1:Because that consolidation replaces the risk of having messy, broken integrations with a predictable, reliable workflow that can actually scale with you instead of breaking.
Speaker 2:That is the takeaway. We see organizations selling thousands of DALA tickets under a completely custom branded domain while at the same time registering hundreds of kids for summer camps.
Speaker 1:And you mentioned the big associations too.
Speaker 2:Yeah. We see large national associations running multiple completely independent stores for their different chapters, but it's all tracked centrally. The system is professional grade and it's tailored specifically for sophisticated fundraising and community engagement.
Speaker 1:You know, this raises an important question for you to explore as you think about streamlining your own operations. We just discussed the multi store capability, which lets different campaigns or chapters have their own unique branded storefronts. How does that separation of identity combined with that centralized data tracking immediately impact supporter engagement and trust compared to forcing all your commerce through one generic central organizational page? That localized identity can be incredibly powerful, something to mull over.
Speaker 2:And for more information about this and all Click and Pledge products, make sure to visit clickandpledge.com and request for a one on one training or demo. Whether you are a client or curious about our platform, just ask us, and we will gladly get together with you to chat. And don't forget to subscribe to this podcast to stay up to date with all the latest and greatest features of the Click and Pledge fundraising command center.